Since Grossmann appears to be obviously hurt, am I the only one that would rather see Gusty in the lineup?

Schenn-Giroux-Voracek
Hartnell-Couturier-Read
Raffl-Lecavlier-Downie
McGinn-Hall-Rinaldo

Give me these lines before Lecavlier is on the 4th line. Just an opinion.
- mochoson

I agree. I see absolutely no benefit of putting him on the 4th line. He has no offensive help.

Or another club in off season?
- missingmike

I know it hasn't been working with Vinny but I don't know how you would get rid of him even if u wanted to. Doesn't he have a ntc? Also, we've used both compliance buyouts. I think he's here for a while and to be fair, he's played centre during his career. So he comes here and we move him to wing and now he sucks?

Does he centre the 4th line or is he still at Wing?

You can absolutely fault the team for signing that player to that contract.

I agree that there was a lack of confidence from management in both Schenn and Couturier coming into the season. But you didn't have to buy that big of an insurance policy (Lecavalier).
- bradleyc4

The fault is not signing the player to the contract. He is still a good player, who can be an asset to the team. The fault is in not using him correctly and putting him in the right position to succeed. I don't buy the notion that putting Schenn at Wing affects his development. I do agree that moving him back and forth does.

Really? ...center position is the least of your flyers issues
- TimB

I'm sure he meant defenseman, bruh.

He's ahead of where guys like Kesler, Mikko Koivu, David Backes were at the same age.
- Tomahawk

This. Everyone, including the flyers, need to learn some patience.

I agree. I see absolutely no benefit of putting him on the 4th line. He has no offensive help.
- Streit2ThePoint

He's not there to score goals. He's there to stay out of the way at ES.

Without scoring, Vinny is next to useless. Vinny was playing poorly before being moved to LW on Schenns line. They've tried with with every line. He was bad with Couts and Read (On the RW I might add) and he was awful with G and Jake.

They tried these other combinations because the line of Hartnell-Schenn-Simmonds was so good at that time.
- PhillySportsGuy

He played a handful of games with Couturier and Read. And again what is being ignored here is how Lecavalier played at Center before his injury. Where he was one of the top forwards, if not the best forward on the team in the first 25 games or so.

Bill Meltzer: Flyers Gameday: 3/28/14 vs. Toronto
- bmeltzer

Please keep the Leafs Slide going, it's fun to watch them implode!

I disagree. Vinny is a top 6 NHL talent on every team in the league.

The problem is his no movement clause, and that's it. THe reality of the situation is the Flyers brought this guy in on a 5 year deal. I don't know about the rest of you, but in no way shape or form has Vinny played so bad that we should be talking about buying him out after 3/4 of a season.

He's on the 4th line tonight. Big deal. He probably won't last there very long and is still a big part of this teams top-9 moving forward.

That being said, IF Vinny was interested in a trade and IF the Flyers could find a suitor, there's no doubt in my mind they move him.
- mochoson

He's been pretty bad this year. People are just trying to defend him by saying he's out of position, with the wrong line mates or injured.

They've mixed and matched him everywhere. The team's 3 best centers are G, Couts and Schenn. They aren't going to move them so Vinny can play center. I don't understand why people think Vinny is going to miraculously become a much better player with a position switch.

He's ahead of where guys like Kesler, Mikko Koivu, David Backes were at the same age.
- Tomahawk

Fair enough and if he turns into one of those guys, that's awesome.

Right now, though, it's tough to watch Schenn's line, 5 on 5, sometimes.

Schenn-Giroux-Voracek
Hartnell-Couturier-Read
Raffl-Lecavlier-Downie
McGinn-Hall-Rinaldo

Give me these lines before Lecavlier is on the 4th line. Just an opinion.
- mochoson

where did Simmonds go? benched?

Since Grossmann appears to be obviously hurt, am I the only one that would rather see Gusty in the lineup?
- JFlyers00

I'd rather see Gustafsson, even if Grossmann were healthy.

- Tomahawk

This is my favorite response. It says "I don't like it, but I can't refute it"

Schenn averages 2:15 a game on the PP
- MJL

Yup. I was looking at that. It just seems like the 2nd unit gets little PP time because the 1st is out there the majority of the time and when they (the 2nd unit) are out there, they have a very hard time getting set up in the zone.

Either way, B Schenn only has 3 PP goals out of 18 total, a few more points than Read, and he, more than VL, is a player we should look to get going. IMO, of course.

Schenn-Giroux-Voracek
Hartnell-Couturier-Read
Raffl-Lecavlier-Downie
McGinn-Hall-Rinaldo

Give me these lines before Lecavlier is on the 4th line. Just an opinion.


That second line could work against the Leafs 1st line. Having Sean all over Kessel ..and Hartnell in JVR"s face. Leafs depend so much on their first line, it's a must to shut them down and frustrate them

He played a handful of games with Couturier and Read. And again what is being ignored here is how Lecavalier played at Center before his injury. Where he was one of the top forwards, if not the best forward on the team in the first 25 games or so.
- MJL

He was shooting at a 30% clip early on. Regression set in.

I disagree. Vinny is a top 6 NHL talent on every team in the league.

The problem is his no movement clause, and that's it. THe reality of the situation is the Flyers brought this guy in on a 5 year deal. I don't know about the rest of you, but in no way shape or form has Vinny played so bad that we should be talking about buying him out after 3/4 of a season.

He's on the 4th line tonight. Big deal. He probably won't last there very long and is still a big part of this teams top-9 moving forward.

That being said, IF Vinny was interested in a trade and IF the Flyers could find a suitor, there's no doubt in my mind they move him.
- mochoson

100%

The fault is not signing the player to the contract. He is still a good player, who can be an asset to the team. The fault is in not using him correctly and putting him in the right position to succeed. I don't buy the notion that putting Schenn at Wing affects his development. I do agree that moving him back and forth does.
- MJL

But it impacts Vinny's performance?

He was shooting at a 30% clip early on. Regression set in.
- bradleyc4

His SH% is still above his career avg... his shots/game has taken a nose-dive, and that's usually a bigger indicator of overall offensive decline than anything else. He used to be able to pump 3-4 shots on net per contest... he's under 2 now, if I remember correctly.

The lines at practice according to D Isaac:

Dave Isaac ‏@davegisaac 12m
Flyers lines: 19-28-93; 15-10-17; 24-14-12; 36-40-18

I'm sure Holmger is ecstatic with his UFA-prize on the fourth line. Reactions?

Edit: And according to Bill, Read on LW and Raffl on RW.
- PhillySteen

At even strength, its where he belongs. Sad, but it is what it is

I think the 2nd line isn't going to play as much down the stretch. They wanted to get McGinn off the third line so Berube can use them a lot more in defensive situations.
- PhillySportsGuy

Agreed

But it impacts Vinny's performance?
- wolfhounds

Yup. Vinny is stud at center. Thats the only thing holding him back from being a legit top 6 player. His defensive miscues won't be exacerbated by playing a position that requires more all around play.

I wish we could chart Schenn's numbers at center without Briere or VL. I bet they would look a lot better than people think.
- PhillySportsGuy

He looked very good centering Hartnell and Simmonds earlier this season

and sorry if these posts are laught, just got back on!

But it impacts Vinny's performance?
- wolfhounds

You have a point here. If Vinny and Briere and Giroux play better at Center then they do at wing, then you have to give at least a possibility that playing at wing could hamper Schenn as well.